Re: [Leica] Photographers named in Diana event

[Harrison McClary <hmcclary@earthlink.net>]

I have been avoiding this thread because it is such a waste of time and 
effort, but I want to point out a few things.

1) All photographers at some point in their career work as a freelancer, 
and if you want to make any money in photography you MUST work as a 
freelancer. When you have bills due you sometimes do things you would 
rather not do to keep from having collection people after you.  Each 
person has to draw his own lines.  I have been offered jobs from the 
Inquirer, Globe (their photo editor is a personal friend of mine), but I 
have always turned them down because I am not comfortable doing that kind 
of work.

2) When a person of Princess Diana's stature is killed it immediately 
becomes a MAJOR INTERNATIONAL NEWS STORY.  This is the kind of thing all 
news people jump on, how the heck do you think you were able to watch it 
live on CNN?  Some of the photographers I saw interviewed after the event 
who were immediately arrested arrived after the crash and were there to 
cover the tradegy as news people and were operating well with in the 
guides of acceptable actions, if their stories can be trusted.   I am 
talking about some of the Sygma, & Gamma guys whose reputations were made 
covering wars here.  They were doing exactly what I, Eric, or any news 
shooter worth a damn would have done when a major event happens in his 
city, namely showing up after the event to report on it for their 
respective news agencies.  For those of you who have never been in a 
situation such as this please remember that police frequently act in what 
can best be described as irrational manners.  I have been threatened with 
arrest several times while doing my job, and I do not push the lines.

The thing Eric has taken offense to is that he feels all photographers, 
regardless of their ethics, have been lumped into the same category.  He 
is right to a great extent here.  I have gotten hassled while on 
assignment for various magazines, the worst was at a computer software 
convention where I was shooting for an Internet trade magazine carting 
around about 300 pounds of lights and cameras.  Not exactly mobile and 
fast shooting here, but I bet 10 people accused me of being a papparizzi.

Anyway those truly responsible for the paparazzi being there are those 
who BUY the rags that print the photos.  If there were no demand there 
would be no supply.

Now please lets get back to discussing MTF of the various Leica Lenses, 
and which is better the current 50 summicron or the DR summicron.  ;)


Dan Cardish wrote

>If he was such a "famed photo-journalist", what the hell was he doing
>hanging around the Ritz that night?  He needed the money?
>
>Dan C.


Harrison McClary
http://people.delphi.com/hmphoto